The Crystal Tree

Song Magic #1

by Imogen Elvis

Briar has finally managed to rebuild her life after losing her parents to the fire that destroyed her entire village. But when the magic-wielding Nameless Ones kidnap her sister, Briar is forced to leave the safety of her new home to save her.

With the help of some travellers on a mission of their own, and her own magic, Briar chases after the Nameless Ones, only to find that her sister’s capture is a small part in a dark plot that threatens the safety of the entire country.

A dark magician has risen, and the legendary Crystal Tree might be the only thing that can save them now.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction

415 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2018

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Friendship. Sisters. Adventure. Magic.

This truly is a lovely book! At the beginning I was afraid, as Briar bumped into a mysterious young man also looking to escape, and I feared instalove. To my relief, there was none! I was pleased to see a deep, caring, and sacrificial friendship emerge between them, and the others on their journey.

There were a number of twists in the story! They were unexpected, yet made sense, which are the best kind of plot twists. It was also beautiful to see Briar grow, and her journey, and I especially loved her words during the climax! The bravery she showed was amazing.

The only complaints I have, are a few world-building elements were murky to me (such as the purpose of the leaves) but since my reading time was interrupted, it's probably my fault! I would have enjoyed seeing more distinct voices for the characters in their dialogue, and sometimes parts of the description felt a little "tell"-y.

Overall, however, this is a book that quietly steals your heart. It's a quick, beautiful, and worthwhile read. I encourage you all to pick it up!

(Note: I was provided an ARC of the novel by the author, in exchange for an honest review.)

[BooKss101|Miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of meeting author Imogen recently at Clunes Booktown, where I bought "The Crystal Tree" and its sequel, "The Shattering Song." Apart from the books, Imogen's delightful personality and passion were truly inspiring. It's wonderful to see young Australian authors out there.
I quickly devoured both books and was captivated right from the beginning. I highly recommend these books for a younger audience as they offer a gentle introduction to the low fantasy genre, making it more accessible and less complex.

I found the concept of a society utilising song magic to be incredibly unique. Imogen's skill in depicting genuine characters is remarkable, especially since I typically immerse myself in high fantasy tales featuring heroes and larger-than-life personalities. The characters in this series were more relatable and subdued, making it ideal for those who appreciate books where they can connect with the characters in how you would 'think' or 'do' in some of these fantasy world scenarios.

Once again, for the romance enthusiasts, there were subtle hints of a budding romance between the two main characters. The emphasis was more on setting the scene, unraveling the story, and exploring the mechanics of this world.

If Imogen ever decides to reimagine or extend the series and turn low fantasy to high-fantasy realm, akin to a retelling but with a deeper exploration of the society, darker tones, or expanded themes for a more mature audience, I would be extremely enthusiastic.
Well done and congratulations on your books Imogen!

[Liz Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: I was given a digital review copy of THE CRYSTAL TREE by the author.

First things first, I am so late in getting this review up. I finished reading THE CRYSTAL TREE, by Imogen Elvis, more than a month ago. I’ve been in the process of moving for the past several months, but now that I have the chance to sit and catch my breath, it’s time to take care of everything I’ve been neglecting.

Imogen Elvis is a great person. I feel like I can’t launch into a review of her book without first talking about her. Normally, I know, book reviews shouldn’t be personal. At least, that’s a rule I try to follow, but it’s more for when I’m writing a one star review, in order to keep myself from saying something mean. This is totally different. I like Imogen a whole lot. If you haven't read her blog yet, you should do that. She is always sweet and kind, and though she hasn't posted in a while, all her old content is great. She’s one of the people who makes the blogging community feel less like a sterile nothingness, a place where you scream into the void, and more like a home, where people listen. So when I saw that she wanted reviewers for her novel, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

One of the first things I noticed about THE CRYSTAL TREE is that it has a similar feel to the Great Tree of Avalon books by T. A. Barron that I read growing up (I guess they’re now just known as the Merlin series). It made me nostalgic and cozy, like I was diving back into the safest parts of my childhood. Maybe I’m weird, but any book that makes me want to reread my favorite books is a good book.

I think one of the issues I have with knowing an author to any degree is that I see them as more immediately human, which means I expect them to be nicer to their characters. It’s kind of like, but I knew that serial killer, he was a great guy—how could he be a serial killer? Not going to lie, Imogen definitely surprised me here. She doesn’t pull her punches (not that I’m complaining, except WHY IMOGEN, WHY? You know what you did). So while Imogen is not a serial killer, I think maybe I should take her characters away from her and put them somewhere safe, at least for a while.

Of course, this review wouldn’t be complete without at least a mention of the magic system. Normally, I’m not a huge magic person, because most magic systems feel stale at this point, like people keep using and reusing the same concept. The magic in THE CRYSTAL TREE is refreshingly different, at least to what I’ve read. The idea of song as a means of working magic? The idea that we all have a life song that someone else can interact with and/or manipulate? Sign me up. It is vivid, beautiful and, at times, frightening. It fills the book with urgency and depth. The main character, Briar, can heal people with her song, which is super cool, but I especially loved her limitations and how they affect her.

And finally, at the risk of sounding spoilery, I like how sometimes the girl saves the guy. That one hundred percent earns you points in my mind.

If THE CRYSTAL TREE is any indication, Imogen has great potential as an author, and I am excited to see what she’ll do next. But I’ll stop talking now so you can go read her book.

[Liz Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

It's been a while since I've read this, and I read it in a late draft, so I haven't seen the finished product. I'm planning to order a hard copy soon to read this! I'm in love with the cover, and can't wait to see what the finished story is!

Review to come after reading this edition!

[Will Cloud · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a confession to make:

I don’t like YA fantasy novels. I grew up reading classical literature and when I hear fantasy, I’m more inclined to think Lord of the Rings instead of Artemis Fowl. So why am I reviewing a young adult fantasy novel, written by a young adult? Simply put, I know Miss Elvis. I’m very glad that I did make a connection through Go Teen Writers with her, because she has opened this very snobby bibliophile to a genre I thought I could never enjoy. She graciously provided me with an advance copy, and I’ve spent the last four days doing nothing but enjoying this novel.

I won’t summarize the plot, since it exists in the blurb, and will instead jump straight in to what I liked and disliked. As a writer, I focus very heavily on world building and mechanics, as well as dialogue. Those are my strengths and so I am constantly looking for these elements: does the world seem believable, how do the powers or magic work within the confines of the world, is the dialogue fitting to the character and universe they’re in, etc. Fortunately, our author has done a beautiful job setting and describing the archtypical fantasy world, as well as writing dialogue that is both believable, natural, and yet high enough to make it clear that we are in a fantasy realm. The idea of magic being transmitted through song is incredibly interesting and unique, and I am left with dozens of questions regarding what this magic can and can’t do. The lore surrounding the kingdom and magic is very solid as well, although we don’t see much of it through the story. Most of the lore is either understood or not known to the characters, and so the reader is left without much knowledge of how the Tree works, or the history of the world they are in.

The plot and the flow of a novel can make or break a brilliant concept, and no amount of shiny things or snappy dialogue can save that. Elvis has given the reader a simple, almost cliche plot. That is by no means a negative remark either: it’s cliche in that it doesn’t combat the norm, but isn’t boring or stale. In fact, my only large critique is with the flow of the story. It never really slows down, but the ending is incredibly abrupt, and attempts to tie things up while setting up a sequel but also be abrupt without being a cliffhanger. The climax of the novel happens in the last two chapters, and we get about half a chapter to fall back down to a normal pace. My personal opinion is that once the second book is published, as it needs to be, this abrupt ending will be less jarring.

Ultimately, a story needs to be engaging, and to provide loveable, unique characters. And let me repeat myself: I don’t like this genre. Most of the time the stories are bland and the protagonists are cookie cutter types. The author has avoided these pitfalls with a story that is simple, well-known, but vibrant and beautiful. Her descriptions are like the songs her magicians sing, soft, glowing and ethereal. They sort of float off the page and into your mind’s eye, painting these Bob Ross-esque paintings. Her characters are instantly loveable, some are charismatic and witty while some like Briar are just decent human beings with a lovely moral compass. They push through hardships and fight for what they love, and ultimately, we all want to see that kind of hero.

The Crystal Tree won’t knock your socks off by being completely off-the-wall or revolutionary, or by causing some existential crisis in your psyche, but should you buy it? Should you spend hours out of your days and weeks to read it? Absolutely. It’s comfortable, familiar, like that favorite blanket you always use in the wintertime when you snuggle up with a cup of hot cocoa or tea and read a good book. It’s by a young, up-and-coming author, and as both a young artist and patron of the arts, I feel it is necessary to support young creators as they seek to better their craft. So please, support this author, support this book, and enjoy a story that made this literary snob love the YA fantasy.

[Azelyn Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Kade shrugged. ‘I believe the Crystal Tree is real. I just don’t think that it does all the things you say it does. It’s a source of magic, not a weather vane.’
“‘Interesting.’ Briar pressed her lips together. Belief in the Tree was as natural as breathing. How could people not see its power in everything around them?”

This book is the fantasy story I wish I had as a teenager. Not that I don’t enjoy it now. I do. It’s just that, wow! That was nostalgic!

I particularly enjoyed Briar and her perspective on the world. She’s one of those strong female protagonists I can actually relate with. She’s capable of using magic—which is in song form! How cool is that!—yet empathetic enough to care about people. And she doubts herself so much that I just want to hug her.

Briar: I’m just a novice. I’m nobody.
Me: You are a precious cinnamon roll!
Kane: I'm nobody too.
Me: You are a LIAR.

There’s no deus ex machina, which the book easily could have fallen into considering the type of magic, but it didn’t. There’s no insta-love. Thank God! But there are plenty of action and travel and magic and gorgeous settings. I particularly like the way Elvis contrasted the open plains with the mountains, how Briar was used to one over the other, and the awe that comes with experiencing something new. Certainly goes to show the author knows what she’s writing about.

Of course, I found some of the plot twists predictable. What can I say? I read too much, and my mom taught me to pick apart plot twists in your average mystery. (Thanks, Mom.) But because I was so focused on one plot twist, I totally missed the other one. So, yeah. I may have screamed at the book. Which I mean as a compliment. All the best books evoke emotion.

In all, I gave The Crystal Tree 4/5 stars for some predictable—and some unpredictable— plot points, excellent setting, and relatable characters. AND A CLIFFHANGER! Thanks a lot. I’d recommend it to readers of young adult and fantasy, particularly those who enjoyed The Books of Pellinor and The Lord of the Rings , though this one is considerably less dense. I just have one question:

When’s the next one coming out?

[Marjolein · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. That's it. All there is to say!

Just kidding. I did really enjoy it though, and I read the full thing in less than 14 hours (and that's including a full night of sleep!) because I couldn't put it down.

As a fellow writer of fantasy, currently still trying to figure out how a magic system is supposed to work, this one was incredible. Different from the wands and spells and substances of the past, the song-magic in this book draws my mind back to C.S. Lewis' Magician's Nephew, where Aslan sings the world to life.

Briar, the main character, is a character in her own right. She isn't a fainting maiden that falls head over heels for the first guy she meets, who then solves all her problems. She goes out on her own to rescue her sister, though I won't tell how and spoil what happens ;)
I did really like her, and I think many readers will do the same. She is empathetic towards people, healing their hurts and feeling them herself. At the same time, she doubts herself, not believing she is capable of what she really is, which is something I can identify with.

I very much recommend reading this, it was truly a delight, and an inspiration for my own writings. I got to read this in exchange for a review of her book, and I hope someday I may be able to do the same, with a book that is even partly as lovely as this was.

I cannot wait to read the sequel, to see what happens to Briar, Kade, Lara, and the rest of the characters that have found a place in my heart. After all, the battle was just beginning.

[yammyam · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 160 pages unfortunately.

I wanted to love this, it promised magic and family and adventure - all the things that I love in the book. Alas, after 160 pages all I got was some magic, some family and zero adventure. Although if you consider pages and pages and pages of travelling aimlessly to… somewhere (I can’t remember the destination since there was so much traveling) then I guess there’s adventure.

The writing is, for lack of a better word, boring. It was so many, many pages of trudging seemingly aimlessly through forests, and towns and villages that were unnecessary. There’s a lot of telling in the prose as well and it added to the painfulness of the experience. A lot of the conversations end up being unnecessary as well 😕

The world building is flimsy, the characters seem inconsistent (or at least for the first 160 pages, they are). Kade is introduced very early on as someone who is capable of facing down their enemies but is incapable of getting out of the little town they’re in without help from Briar. He meets up with his friends outside and they seem to be able to fight well but he doesn’t believe in the supernatural wolves who are in fact real. Briar ends up with a medallion that seems to be significantly important but we don’t get any other mention of it so it just sits there as a ‘ok so what is this’? through the first 160 pages.

Briar has a significant amount of powerful magic and knows how to use it except she doesn’t.

Yeah I don’t know. Bummer.

[Jaclyn Kitchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I shall call this my COVID book as I read it during my isolation and finished the day I came out. I first learned about this book when a friend read it and posted it on GoodReads. Thanks Nicole! It looked intriguing but the library didn't have it so I added it to my Christmas "reads" list. The copy I received was a little battered but perhaps that's a good representation of what the characters go through as well.

At 415 pages it did read fairly quickly (I finished in about 5 days) and was packed with adventure and a different sort of magic that was intriguing. I have already ordered the 2nd book because I hate not knowing how the story will end.

It's clean and carries a theme of hope which is always appealing to me.

I do hope that any subsequent printings will have fewer type-o's. At the beginning I tried to ignore them and then got to a point where I just got out a pencil and started crossing out words or circling areas with misspellings or other such errors. I wanted to give it 5 stars but these types'o's make it difficult, but seeing as how I cannot give 4.5 I'll go with 5 based primarily on the story itself.

[Abby Glann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this lovely fantasy novel. Usually, I avoid independent authors. Too often their work has been like reading someone's school project. This was a delightful departure from that trend. The story flowed well, kept you interested, and didn't depend on so many of the crutches often found in a first novel. I enjoyed the use of song as magic and that it wasn't a solution for everything. The characters still had to work for their goals. Briar was vulnerable, but flexible and grew in strength as the story progressed. Her friends were just that. If a romance is budding, and one might be, it isn't overwhelming. It adds to the story instead of feeling like an afterthought to keep you interested. Aside from several typos that careful proofreading can take care of scattered throughout, it is an excellent beginning to what I hope will be a very nice series. Looking forward to the next one!

[Elza Kinde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Briar's attempt to rebuild her life shatters when a dangerous group of magicians arrive in Osman, bringing nothing but trouble and taking Briar's sister, Ava, with them. Left with nothing, Briar chases down the Nameless Ones with the aid of some mysterious travelers and her own meager magic.

With everything from narrow escapes, musical magic, and misguided misadventures The Crystal Tree is everything you love about classic fantasy. Though the story has some darker themes, the telling of it remains surprisingly lighthearted and hopeful. I'd recommend The Crystal Tree to fans of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows or the classic Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander.

An excellent first impression of the series, I look forward to seeing what happens in Book 2.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Briar is a soul singer, a magician who can heal. But her magic offers no protection when the Nameless Ones come to her new home and abduct her sister. Briar immediately wants to rescue her - though this will mean travelling and joining forces with strangers who have secrets that can endanger their lives, as well as the entire kingdom.

For a while now, I've felt that something is missing from trad published YA fantasy. I can't say exactly what it is, but I guess I'll be cliche and say they're missing...the magic. The Crystal Tree brought back the magic for me. It threw me right back to my childhood in the 1990s and was the comforting blanket that I very much needed. This is a brilliant indie YA fantasy - and beautifully written too.

[Asheton Little · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved the book, and I like how the characters are quite relatable. Another thing that I really like is how Briar is so devoted to her sister that she was willing to go as far she had to, to try to find her. It's a really good book that I would definitely recommend that you read. I really hope that there will be a sequel.

I hope that this will help you in your decision on whether to buy the book or not.

[MultiverseMoss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes among all the darkness in the real world you just want a bit of comforting escapism, and I got exactly that with the Crystal Tree. This is such a breezy, cozy read, the author knows how to spin a good yarn and you can tell she had a good time writing this. It has an old school storytelling feel, there's something very nostalgic about the world and writing style, but the magic system is really original! Recommend reading this curled up under a blanket with a cat, it's a feel-good read.

[Addison Little · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great addition to the fantasy genre. I loved the storyline and the characters. I also liked that Briar's primary motivation is to save her sister, this book was well written and had many great characters, and I thought the main villain's name (sorry, no spoilers) was pretty cool. I would definitely recommend that you read the Crystal Tree. I really hope there is a book 2!

[Venisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn’t put it down! The Crystal Tree transported me into a magical world. The main characters became fellow travelers and friends. Can’t wait for the next book. There will be a next book, right?!